REPORT #309 June 2000
THE REMOTE MAYAN VILLAGES OF THE TOLEDO DISTRICT ARE SITTING
ON A SMALL PRODUCING GOLDMINE, CALLED MILPA RECYCLING!

Produced by the Belize
Development Trust

By Ray Auxillou
Belize Development Trust

Can the Government officials in Belmopan, or those port town Creole
Politician "leaders" organize the certification and issuing of carbon
sequestering bonds, for the Mayan Hill Toledo communities?

There are numerous Mayan organizations already among the 15,000
estimated people in scattered farms and villages across the District of
Toledo high rain forest jungle hills. What they lack is some
bureaucratic technical knowledge and skills to deal with the outside
world. It would be a good marriage and development issue for the Belize
National Government, a Toledo District Government and the various Mayan
village organizations to organize and represent the bureaucratic paper
work process, in getting together a working carbon sequestering program
of BOND sales in world markets, notably the Chicago Exchange; so
individual farmers would have a cash flow income ( on which they would
have to pay INCOME TAX) in return for the milpa that is being
re-generated into new jungle cover.

A Mayan family group, usually three generations, recycles about 9
acres every three years, of jungle. The 9 acre plots lie fallow for
about 30 years, but are eligible for the recycling fallow period to earn
money from Carbon Sequestering Bonds. The carbon sequesting Emission
Swapping Oxygen Trading Rights are effective for new forest growth since
1990 according to the Kyoto Protocol which covers these things.

The roughly 15,000 population of the Mayan Hills of the Toledo
District, represent about 5000 farmers doing MILPA. Since 1990, that
would make, 9 acres per family every three years, or 5000 milpero
families times 27 acres each already eligible for sale in Carbon
Sequestering-Oxygen Rights BONDS. Or a total of new fallow jungle
growth eligible for carbon sequestering BONDs issuance and CERTIFICATION
by a Belize Government Bond Issuing Carbon Sequestering Program of
135,000 acres of BOND acreage that would bring income to the Mayan Hills
farmers.

Current carbon bond prices on the open market are selling for $100 USA
per acre for a crop of beans and $385 a ton of wood for new forest.
Consider, that Milpa farmers with acreage being worked in beans could
also earn $100 USA per acre, or $900 USA, or $1800 Bz per year while they
grow beans as a by-product, that is pretty good. New fallow milpa going
into new jungle wouldn't have much tonnage, but each year, the tonnage
would rise for the next 30 years. So the income would be growing
steadily. ( See Report # 259 of the Belize Development Trust, at:
https://ambergriscaye.com/BzLibrary)

Already there is an estimated 135,000 acres of new jungle eligible, if
this program is organized to favor the MILPA farmers. $13,500,000 USA
value today in Belize going to waste at $100 per acre and with an
estimated value of $175 an acre in wood tonnage the recycled fallow
jungle from milpa farmers is now worth an estimated 135,000 acres times
$175 = $23, 625,000, or $23 million income PER YEAR, to the 15,000 people
farming by milpa of the Toledo Hills high rain forest.

While the above estimates are only approximate, they do represent
untapped financial resources of foreign exchange and a new income source
for impoverished uneducated rural subsistance farming families. The
scope of this program idea is much wider than just the Toledo Hills, but
it is a good place to start with a focus.

Lacking is initiative and leadership by that bunch of port town CREOLES
who went to St. Johns College up in the far away port of Belize City, up
north. They have the skills to do the Internet Research, the writing of
papers, organizing certifications and Bonds, Milpa Farmer Association
bank accounts, creating elections for a Toledo Hills farmers Cooperative
of Milpa Farms carbon sequestering program, the setting up of a farmers
bank account to distribute bond revenue to farmers according to acreage,
overflights and photographs for annual proofs of lands cleared for milpa
that are going back into fallow jungle production which would be eligible
for Bond Certification.

The organizing and paperwork should be right down the alley of Belmopan
port city educated salaried civil service types. The farmers would get a
steady cash flow annually to supplement their income and become eligible
to pay income taxes, more cash circulating in the Toledo Hills would
create pockets of investment capital to raise standards of living and
relieve poverty. Heck! I bet you could even run the program from
FOREIGN GRANTS out of Belmopan, based on the POVERTY jingoist jargon
alone used in foreign AID circles nowadays.

While technically this would be a function of the Marketing Board, they
do not seem to have these sort of skills. Nor do they have a very good
historical record.

If I was the Prime Minister, I would start a program in Belmopan right
away and whoever did that wonderful funding of the Archeological
Restoration project would be my first choice to implement the program.
Pay for the program by GRANTS!